Brazilian GP - Interlagos 6 April 2003
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The third appointment in the 2003 Formula 1 season was an exciting race with many unexpected occurrences, an early end and a disputed winner. Again, the show and the excitement were more down to the weather conditions, though the new tyre rules meant that the majority of the drivers were on the wrong rubber for most of the race. The race started 15 minutes late because of the violent downpour. Rumors were flying that the GP could be cancelled altogether because the tyre companies had brought the wrong type of rain tyre, but the race finally started behind the safety car. After seven laps the safety car went in and the race proper took off, though with a large amount of standing water. Race leader Barrichello gambled and lost on a slow approach to the start line, with the two McLaren and Montoya passing him straight away. On the 18th lap Firman suffered a broken front suspension that sent him flying into Panis' car, causing the safety car to come back on track. This allowed M. Schumacher to catch up with the McLaren. When the race restarted on lap 22 a veritable carnage ensued. The poor drainage system of the Interlagos complex meant that some parts of the track had dried out, while others were being crossed by streams of running water. The worst spot was the third corner (Curva do Sol), which gathered many drivers including Montoya, Pizzonia, Button, Wilson and M. Schumacher. Pizzonia went out shortly after Montoya and hit his Williams. Luckily the Colombian had not yet started to come out of his car, or it could have been a really nasty accident. The crane located at the Curva do Sol moved the cars behind the barrier as soon as they crashed, but soon space started running scarce. Barrichello, who had been engaged in a good battle with R. Schumacher for seconfd place earlier on, took the lead from a struggling Coulthard for the joy of the local fans. His reign, however, was to be short-lived. On lap 48 his car shut down and the unlucky Brazilian had to park it by the side and retired. The problem was later revealed to be a fault with the telemetry that had caused the Ferrari team to miscalculate Barrichello's fuel load. Simply put, he had run out of fuel. With their hero out of actions, several members of the public lost interest and started leaving. The race was far from over though. Coulthard was back in the lead, but soon had to go to the pits for fuel and new tyres, coming back out on the track in fourth place behind Fernando Alonso. That's when the things that would decide the race for good started happening. Had the Scot chosen to stay out for another lap he would most likely have been the winner. Coulthard's pit stop put team mate Räikkönen into the lead, followed by Fisichella. Webber fell into the wet track trap on the main straight and smashed his Jaguar against the barrier, half of the car bouncing back onto the track and across it. The yellow flags were displayed and the safety car was called out again for the fourth time. Fisichella, who had exploited a mistake of Räikkönen's to take the lead, and the Finn cautiously chicaned through the debris and passed the accident spot safely. Alonso, possibly due to lack of experience, stormed through it, hit a loose wheel from Webber's car and crashed violently against the barrier. He managed to come out of the wreck unaided but clearly in a bad state. He collapsed against the barrier and the race was red-flagged to allow medical care to be brought to him. The unlucky Spaniard was taken to hospital and the race was called concluded because more than three quarters had been run. Räikkönen had decided to take advantage of the safety car called out for Webber's crash and was in the pits for fuel when the race was stopped. The cars that had survived the day's slaughter were taken to the parc fermé, where Fisichella's, considered at this point to be the winner, caught fire for unknown reasons to finish off in style one of the most bizarre GPs of the modern times. After much deliberation and when the Jordan team was already celebrating Fisichella's maiden victory, the race stewards decided the winner was in fact Räikkönen because of the rule stating that in case of a red-flagged race the finishing positions must be taken from two laps before the lap when the race was actually stopped. According to the stewards' timekeeping, the race had been stopped when the leader (Fisichella) was on lap 55. On lap 53 Räikkönen was the race leader. The podium ceremony was a strange affair indeed, with Räikkönen on the highest step looking embarrassed and Fisichella visibly upset. The lowest step was empty as the third classified, Alonso, had been taken to hospital. Brazilian GP results:
1. 6 RAIKKONEN McLaren Mercedes M 1h29'53"179 204.197 Km/h A few days after the Brazilian GP the Jordan team was able to prove that the stewards' timekeeping was wrong and that Fisichella had already started his 56th lap when the race was red-flagged. On lap 54 the Italian was in the lead, so the results of the Brazilian GP were modified and Fisichella was declared the winner. Despite the fact that Fisichella will receive the Brazilian GP trophy in an official ceremony on the start line of the San Marino GP, he has been stripped of the chance to enjoy his maiden victory in a proper podium ceremony. The FIA has promised to make sure that similar events will not be repeated in the future. Brazilian GP revised finishing positions:
1. FISICHELLA Jordan Ford |
